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A Change of Seasons (song)
'A Change of Seasons '''is the first track off of Dream Theater's EP of the same name, and is the first Dream Theater song released to feature Derek Sherinian on keyboards following Kevin Moore's departure after the release of ''Awake. The lyrics were written by Mike Portnoy about the death of his mother, Andrea Held Leone, who died in a tragic plane crash in November 1984, after the pilot suffered a heart attack. The song is split into seven parts, which are as follows: * I. The Crimson Sunrise * II. Innocence * III. Carpe Diem * IV. The Darkest of Winters * V. Another World * VI. The Inevitable Summer * VII. The Crimson Sunset Personnel * Mike Portnoy - Drums * John Petrucci - Guitar * John Myung - Bass * James LaBrie - Vocals * Derek Sherinian - Keyboards * David Prater - Producer Trivia * This song includes samples from the films "Dead Poets Society", “Table for Five”, and from the Robert Herrick poem, "To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time". * An edited version of the title track was used in a downhill skiing feature during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. * For Dream Theater's 2017 Images, Words, And Beyond Tour, this song was often played as an encore, albeit a half step down to better suit James LaBrie's aging voice. * This song was not written for when they started recording the EP. The band initially wanted to have Images and Words be a double album, and include A Change of Seasons along with it, but ATCO wouldn't allow it. There is a live video performance of the band performing this song in 1993, which can be found on Youtube, however the arrangement found in the video is drastically different from the EP version, with a different intro and some differences in phrasing, lyrics, and notes. When Derek Sherinian joined the band, he rewrote the intro, and the rest of the band helped to rework the music, and Portnoy rewrote some lyrics to make the song into what is is today. Lyrics THE CRIMSON SUNRISE Instrumental INNOCENCE I remember a time My frail, virgin mind Watched the crimson sunrise Imagined what it might find Life was filled with wonder I felt the warm wind blow I must explore the boundaries Transcend the depth of winter's snow Innocence caressing me I never felt so young before There was so much life in me Still I longed to search for more But those days are gone now Changed like a leaf on a tree Blown away forever Into the cool autumn breeze The snow has now fallen And my sun's not so bright I struggle to hold on With the last of my might In my den of inequity Viciousness and subtlety Struggle to ease the pain Struggle to finally see Ignorance surrounding me I've never been so filled with fear All my life's been drained from me The end is drawing near... CARPE DIEM Carpe diem... Seize the day... I'll always remember The chill of November The news of the fall The sounds in the hall The clock on the wall Ticking away... "Seize the day!" I heard him say Life will not always be this way Look around Hear the sounds Cherish your life While you're still around Poets Society" Sample: "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, Old Time is still a-flying; And this same flower that smiles today Tomorrow will be dying" We can learn From the past But those days Are gone We can hope For the future But there may not be one The words stuck in my mind Alive from what I've learned I have to seize the day To home I returned Preparing for her flight I held with all my might Fearing my deepest fright She walked into the night She turned for one last look She looked me in the eye I said, "I love you... Good-bye..." Poets Society" and "Table for Five" Samples: ("It's the most awful thing you'll ever hear...") ("...your mom... who you dearly love, has had to leave all our lives...") ("Seize the day!") ("Something happened...") ("Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.") ("...she was killed.") THE DARKEST OF WINTERS Instrumental ANOTHER WORLD So far or so it seems All is lost With nothing fulfilled Off the pages and the T.V. screen Another world Where nothing's true Tripping through The life fantastic Lose a step And never get up Left alone With a cold blank stare I feel like giving up I was blinded by a paradise Utopia high in the sky A dream that only drowned me Deep in sorrow, wondering why Oh, come let us adore him Abuse and then ignore him No matter what Don't let him be Let's feed upon his misery Then string him up for all the world to see I'm sick of all you hypocrites Holding me at bay And I don't need your sympathy To get me through the day Seasons change and so can I Hold on boy, no time to cry Untie these strings, I'm climbing down I won't let them push me away Oh, come let us adore him Abuse and then ignore him No matter what Don't let him be Let's feed upon His misery Now it's time for them To deal with me THE INEVITABLE SUMMER Instrumental THE CRIMSON SUNSET I'm much wiser now A lifetime of memories Run through my head They taught me how For better or worse Alive or dead I realize There's no turning back Life goes on The offbeaten track I sit down with my son Set to see the crimson sunset (Gather ye rosebuds while ye may) Many years have come and gone I've lived my life, but now must move on (Gather ye rosebuds while ye may) He is my only one Now that my time has come Now that my life is done We look into the sun Seize the day And don't you cry Now it's time to say good-bye Even though I'll be gone I will live on Live on Tone and Analysis Overall, the entire song is very progressive, with John Petrucci using a seven-string guitar to play the song. To analyze the song, it's easier to break it down section by section. I. The Crimson Sunrise The first section of the song starts out very subdued, with a calming acoustic melody being played, and shortly being joined by piano. The acoustic melody gives way after a couple of minutes to the full band to a heavier version of the melody from before. The song moves through several alternate picking patterns and instrumental melodies before moving to a section alternating between 3/4 and 9/8. The section ends with a rapid alternate picked passage on guitar in 17/16 syncopated with the bass and percussion. II. Innocence The second section segues directly from the first one, with the keyboard playing a sixteenth-note melody and the guitar and bass providing the background chords. After a few seconds, the guitar joins the keyboard to play the same melody in unison, which segues into a short guitar solo before the vocals start. When the vocals start, the guitar returns to a more acoustic sound for the first verse, but shortly returns to the distorted rock sound. The band stays at this state for a time, and the keyboard even reprises the melody from the beginning of this section. After the melody finishes, the band brings it back down a few decibels to the subdued acoustic sound. This continues until the next verse is finished, where it kicks back into the distorted sound until the next section. III. Carpe Diem The third section starts with arpeggiated chords being played on an acoustic guitar, and stays at this for the majority of the section, as it doesn't really pick up until the end of the section. This section also includes audio samples from the films "Dead Poets Society" and "Table For Five." The samples from Dead Poets Society are taken from the scene where Robin Williams' character has a student read "To the Virgins, To Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick to the class at the school he teaches. The samples from Table For Five are taken from the scene in which J.P. Tannen, played by Jon Voight, tells his children that their mother has been killed. IV. The Darkest of Winters This is the second of three instrumental sections in this song, along with The Crimson Sunrise and The Inevitable Summer. This section is relatively heavy, and includes a unison with the keyboard, guitar and bass. This moves into small little solo sections for the instruments, starting with bass, then guitar, then keyboard. V. Another World This section slows way down, and brings back the acoustic guitar, and a pipe organ is featured prominently for the first measures. This section is mostly acoustic, but comes back with distorted guitars when the subject of the song decides they will no longer be held down by those who would oppose them. VI. The Inevitable Summer This is the third and final instrumental section of the song. It stays fairly melodic, for the most part, but then jumps into a heavy, chugging riff which gives way to a keyboard solo by Derek Sherinian. Once the keyboard solo finishes, there are a few leitmotifs from the beginning of the song which are brought back. A small guitar solo ends this section off. VII. The Crimson Sunset The beginning of this section segues directly from the end of the solo, with the subject talking about how much wiser they have become from their life experiences. This section stays fairly heavy, similar to the previous section, but gives way to an almost melodic finale with a prominent piano theme. The song seems to end with a F#sus4 chord with the low B string added in, but the acoustic theme from the beginning of The Crimson Sunrise is reprised for the last few measures as the cymbals roll out and the other instruments fade into silence, eventually leaving only the acoustic guitar to finish the song. Appearances * A Change of Seasons (album) - Original recorded version * Once in a LIVEtime - Live version featuring Derek Sherinian * Live Scenes from New York - Live version featuring Jordan Rudess * Live at Budokan 2017 - Japanese TV broadcast featuring Mike Mangini Category:Songs over 15 minutes of length Category:Songs Category:Epics Category:7-string guitar songs